Process of making alloy steel.



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ALAN KISSOCK, OF TUCSON, ARIZONA.

PROCESS OF MAKING ALLOY STEEL.

No Drawing.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, ALAN Kissock, a citizenof the United States, and a resident of Tucson, Arizona, have invented anew and useful Process of Making Alloy Steel, of which the following isa specification.

The invention relates lto a. process of making alloy steel, and theobjects and advantages thereof will be set forth in part hereinafter andin part will be obvious herefrom or may be learned by practice with theinvention.

The invention consists in the novel steps and processes hereindescribed.

In the manufacture of alloy steel the usual practice is to add orintroduce into the fused steel the alloying element, such as tungsten,chromium, molybdenum, vanadium, etc., in the elemental form or in theform of a high grade alloy of such alloying metal, usually with iron,known as the ferro state. This involves as a preliminary step, in orderto obtain the alloying metal in the elemental or ferro state, thereduction of the ores or salts of these elements to the metallic formthis being usually done in an electric or other suitable furnace.

The oxids of certain elements, members of the fifth and sixth groups ofthe periodic System, such as molybdenum, tungstemchromium and vanadium,each combine with the oxids of certain other elements, more especiallywith certain of the alkali metals and the alkaline-earth metals, ofwhich calcium oxid may be regarded as an example, to form a salt of thegeneral type known as molybdate, tungstatc, vanada-te, etc., of calciumor other such element. In the case of the particular elements justenumerated, these salts would be of the eneral forms CaOMoO CaOWo and CaV 0 At the present time, I prefer to employ the salts of calcium of therespective metals, and also prefer at present to employ eithermolybdenum, vanadium or tungsten as the constituent element of the saltwhich reduces to produce the alloying metal for the steel. These saltsof calcium can all be produced from the ores of these elements withoutthe use of furnacing and often these salts are necessarily produced inthe ore reduction process. That is, the ferro state of these elementsmay be obtained or produced by furnace reduction of their calcium saltsSpecification of Letters Patent.

Patented ADI. 15 1919.

Application filed August 28, 1918. Serial No. 251,?

which have in turn been produced from the ores.

The present invention obviates the preliminary or preparatory reductionofthe ores or salts of these desired alloying elements to the metallicstate, and provides for introducing the alloying metal directly from thesalt of the metal into the steel.

The procedure under my present method is essentially that instead ofreducing the orcs of these elements to the metallic state in an outsidefurnace, and then introducing such alloying element into the moltensteel,

the calcium salt is added directly into the steel melting furnace. Thecarbon content of the steel and its bath, which carbon is actuallyprevious alloy of the steel, reduces the calcium salt of the molybdenum,vanadium, tungsten, or other alloying element, the so reduced elementalloying directly with the steel. If desired other carbon may be addedto, or substituted for, the carbon content of the steel and its bath.The calcium oxid which is a constituent of the salt fixes the metallicalloy element and prevents its volatilization, thus avoiding loss, andpre- SPlits the element capable of alloying directly with the steel inthe melting furnace. Some other suitable reducing agent other thancarbon, such as silicon, which also may be a previous alloy of thesteel, may be employed in the melting furnace. There are therebyeliminated the outside reduction of the ores or salts of these elements,with the attendant time, cost and labor, and large furnace losses ofthese costly elements are likewise avoided.

That I claim is 1. The process of making alloy steel which comprisesreducing a suitable salt of an alloying metal by subjecting the salt tofurnace temperatures for a protracted period in the presence of fusedsteel by the carbon or silicon contained in the steel acting directlyupon the salt whereby the alloying lnetal is reduced directly from thesalt and immediately enters the steel without the preliminary conversioninto a ferro alloy of the alloying metal of the salt preparatory to itsintroduction into the steel.

2. The process of making alloy steel which comprises reducing a suitablesalt of an alloying metal by subjecting the salt to furnace tmnperaturesfor a protracted period in the presence of fused steel by a reducingagent which constitutes a previous alloy of the fused steel actingdirectly upon the salt whereby the alloying metal is reduced directlyfrom the salt and immediately enters the steel without the preliminaryconversion into a ferro alloy of the alloying metal of the saltpreparatory to its introduction into the steel.

3. The process of making alloy steel which comprises reducing an alkalimetal salt 01 allmline-earth, metal salt of an alloying metal bysubjecting the salt to furnace temperatures for a protracted period inthe presence of fused steel by the carbon content of the steel and itsbath employed in the steel process acting; directly upon the saltwhereby the alloy metal is reduced directly from the salt andimmediately enters the steel without the preliminary conversion into aterm alloy of the alloyinp metal of the salt preparatory to itsintroduction into the steel.

4. The process of makin alloy steel which comprises reducing a sail ofan alloying metal of the fifth or sixth periodic group by subjecting thesalt to furnace temperatures for a protracted period in the presence offused steel by the carbon content of the steel and its bath employed inthe steel process acting directly upon the salt whereby the alloyingmetal is reduced directly from the salt and immediately enters the steelwithout the preliminary conversion into a ferro alloy of the alloyingmetal of the salt preparatory to its introduction into the steel.

The process of making alloy steel which comprises reducing a metallicsalt of an alloying metal by subjecting the salt to furnace temperaturesfor a protracted period in the presence of fused steel by the carboncontent of the steel and its bath employed in the steel process actingdirectly upon the salt whereby the alloying metal is reduced directlyfrom the salt and immediately enters the steel without the preliminaryconversion into a ferro alloy of the alloying metal of the saltpreparatory to its introduction into the steel.

6. The process of making alloy steel which comprises reducin a calciumsalt of an alloying metal of t e fifth or sixth periodic group bysubjecting the salt to furnace temperature in the presence of fusedsteel by the carbon or silicon content of the steel and its bathemployed in the steel process acting directly upon the salt whereby thealloying metal is reduced from the salt and directly enters the steel asan alloy.

7. The process of making alloy steel which comprises reducing calciummolybdate, at furnace temperature in the presence of fused steel bymeans of carbon as a reducing agent whereby the. reduced molybdenum iscaused to enter the steel.

8. The process of making alloy steel which comprises reducing calciummolybdate at furnace temperature in the presence of fused steel wherebythe reduced molybdenum is caused to enter the steel as an alloy.

9. The process of making alloy steel which comprises reducing a suitablesalt of an alloying metal at furnace temperature in the presence offused steel by a reducing agent which constitutes a previous alloy ofthe fused steel. whereby the alloying metal is reduced directly from itssalt and immediately enters the stcel without the preliminary conversioninto a ferro alloy of the alloying metal of the salt preparatory to itsintroduction into the steel.

10. The process of making alloy steel which comprises reducing asuitable salt of an alloying metal at furnace temperature in thepresence of fused steel by the action of carbon as a reducing agentthereby reduc ing the alloying metal from its salt and causing' it toimmediately and directly enter the steel as an alloy thereof.

11. The process of making alloy steel which comprises reducing an alkalimetal salt or allmline-carth metal salt of an alloy ing metal of thefifth or sixth periodic groups at furnace temperature in the presence offused steel by the action of carbon as a reducing agenh thereby reducingthe metal directly from its salt and causing it to immediately anddirectly enter the steel as an alloy thereof.

12. The process of making alloy steel which comprises reducing a. saltof an alloying metal at furnace temperature in the presence of fusedsteelby a suitable reagent whereby the alloying metal is reduceddirectly from its salt and immediately enters the steel without thepreliminary conversion into a ferro alloy of the alloying metal of thesalt preparatory to its introduction into the steel.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

ALAN KISSOCK.

